Northwick Park redevelopment takes another step forward at Monday's Cabinet

Property owners/leaseholders

The One Public Estate plan for Northwick Park will take a step forward at Cabinet on Monday February 12th when it is expected that a revised Memorandum of Understanding LINK between the partners will be approved and a timetable agreed.

The One Public Estate (OPE) is a government initiative aimed at rationalising and realising the potential (including financial) of public land by bringing together all the various public sector owners for redevelopment.  In the case of Northwick Park this includes Brent Council, Network Homes, the University of Westminster and the London NW Healthcare NHS Trust. LINK

Various options are considered in a feasibility study (embedded at the end of this article) and the favoured one is Option B2:

Click on image to enlarge

This includes the highest density of housing and reprovision of the existing university accommodation. On the issue of the proportion of affordable housing proposed the feasibility study notes '50% affordable [is at] the margins of viability, before any consideration of the value of existing uses'. The Option B1 included the provision of a new secondary school which may have provided a site for the proposed North Brent Secondary School LINK.

The plans are at an early stage but may include provision of much needed lift access at Northwick Park Metropolitan Line Station and work to improve the present narrow tunnel exit to the hospital and university, and improved pedestrian access to South Kenton station on the Bakerloo and Overground lines.  There is the possibility of a new road being built to take traffic into the area.

The Officers' report puts forward this timetable:

·      Prepare a planning brief for the site. (Feb 18- Dec 18) 


·      Commission further transport studies. (Feb 18- Dec 18) 


·      Maximise OPE funding. (ongoing) 


·      Commission energy feasibility studies. (Jan 18- July 18) 


·      Consider potential for inclusion of a secondary school. (Jan 18 – July 18) 


Network Homes Ltd and LNWUH to conclude negotiations on NHS owned 
land. (June 2018) Timescales are indicative. 

These are early days but local residents will want to look into the plans carefully for any impact on the Metropolitan Open Land that surrounds the site and which they have fought so hard to preserve in Harrow-on-the-Hill.